Design and Manufacture of a Solar-Powered Snow Melter for Making Potable Water on Mt
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AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Whitney K. Hopple for the degrees of Honors Baccalaureate of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Baccalaureate of Arts in International Studies with a focus in German presented on March 6, 2014. Title: Design and Manufacture of a Solar-Powered Snow Melter for Making Potable Water on Mt. Rainier. Abstract Approved: _______________________________________________________________ John Parmigiani, Thesis Mentor Every Spring and Summer, thousands of climbers attempt to summit Mt. Rainier. Many of them stop at Camp Muir, a base camp at 10,000 feet, where they can use restrooms, camp overnight, or refill water bottles before continuing their climb. Camp Muir currently uses a gas system to melt snow into potable water, requiring a tank of propane to be flown by helicopter to the camp at the beginning of each season. This system is costly and not environmentally-friendly. International Mountain Guides (IMG), one group who organizes trips in small groups, wants to replace this water production system with one that incorporates green energy. This publication examines possible designs of a new snow-melting device, describes the selected design, and outlines future testing and evaluation. The final design is portable, uses solar-electric energy, and makes use of both conductive and convective heat transfer to increase efficiency. The melting system is contained within a five-gallon water cooler. Energy is collected and stored using a solar panel and battery pack. The battery pack supplies power to a heating element and pump, which heat the snow and recirculate water over remaining snow. The design will be implemented during the 2014 climbing season. Keywords: Engineering design, Snow Melting, Mt. Rainier, Camp Muir, Solar power Corresponding e-mail address: [email protected] Design and Manufacture of a Solar-Powered Snow Melter for Making Potable Water on Mt. Rainier by Whitney K. Hopple A PROJECT Submitted to Oregon State University University Honors College and International Degree Program in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degrees of Honors Baccalaureate of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Baccalaureate of Arts in International Studies with a focus in German Presented March 6th, 2014 Commencement June 2014 Honors Baccalaureate of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Baccalaureate of Arts in International Studies with a focus in German project of Whitney K. Hopple presented on March 6th, 2014. APPROVED: Mentor, representing Mechanical Engineering Committee Member, representing Mechanical Engineering Committee Member, representing International Studies Dean, University Honors College I understand that my project will become part of the permanent collection of Oregon State University, University Honors College, and the International Degree Program. My signature below authorizes release of my project to any reader upon request. Whitney K. Hopple, Author Acknowledgements The author of this paper would like to thank her family and friends who guided her through the process of this publication. A special thanks goes to her parents, Jon and Maria; her coworkers, John and Dale; her mentor and committee members, Dr. Parmigiani, Dr. Narayanan, and Mr. Fleury; and her friends, Mike, Tim, Kameron, Mitchell, and Nasko who helped contribute to this paper. Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................... v List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................. vii List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................. viii Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Background ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Theory ....................................................................................................................................................... 1 Existing Alternatives ................................................................................................................................. 3 Device Design ............................................................................................................................................... 4 Requirement Definition ............................................................................................................................ 5 Functional Decomposition ........................................................................................................................ 6 Selected Design ......................................................................................................................................... 7 Fabrication, Testing, and Design Modifications ........................................................................................... 7 Prototype Design Specification and Manufacture..................................................................................... 7 Relating Power to Melting Rate .............................................................................................................. 11 Design Modifications .............................................................................................................................. 13 Final Design ................................................................................................................................................ 15 Application of Experimental Results ...................................................................................................... 15 Final Design Description and Use .......................................................................................................... 15 Conclusions and Applications ..................................................................................................................... 19 International Applications - Germany ..................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 21 List of Figures Figure 1. Anticipated Snow and Water Melting Temperature ..................................................................... 3 Figure 2. Functional Decomposition ............................................................................................................ 6 Figure 3. Diagram of the Prototype Snow Melter ........................................................................................ 8 Figure 4. Components of the Prototype Snow Melter .................................................................................. 9 Figure 5. Photographs of Prototype Design ............................................................................................... 10 Figure 6. Goal Zero Yeti 400 Battery Back and Boulder 15 solar Panel ................................................... 11 Figure 7. Approximated Melting Behavior of Snow in a Cylindrical Tank ............................................... 12 Figure 8. Changes in Water and Snow Temperature during Experimentation (Annotated) ...................... 13 Figure 9. Final Snow-Melter Design .......................................................................................................... 16 Figure 10. Cross Section of Final Snow Melter Design ............................................................................. 17 Figure 11. Photographs of the Final Design ............................................................................................... 18 List of Tables Table 1. House of Quality ............................................................................................................................ 5 Table 2. Components of the Prototype Snow Melter ................................................................................. 10 Table 3. Environmental Conditions During Freezer Testing ..................................................................... 13 Table 4. Fluid Properties Used to Determine Snow Melting Rate ............................................................. 14 Table 5. Time Needed to Melt Required Volume of Snow for Hikers on Mt. Rainier .............................. 15 Table 6. Components of the Prototype Snow Melter ................................................................................. 19 Introduction International Mountain Guides (IMG) is an organization that leads groups of mountain climbers on one- and two-day hikes to the summit of Mt. Rainier in Southern Washington. On these climbs, IMG is required to provide potable drinking water for the climbers in their group. Their current method of water production is inefficient, costly, and not environmentally friendly. As a result, IMG wants to replace this system with one that is more cost effective, is portable, and better reflects their environmental attitudes. This paper outlines the design, manufacture, and analysis of the alternative design submitted to IMG for implementation at Camp Muir, a base camp and rest stop for their climbers at 10,000 feet on Mt. Rainier. This paper examines the proposed design